The Reilu Compromise
by Frost Deejn
Summary: Kira travels to the Gamma Quadrant to save Odo from antiDominion neoMarquis. But when an evil Founder plots to collapse the Wormhole, Odo, Kira, and an unexpected ally must work together to save the Prophets from destruction.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Paramount owns _Star Trek Deep Space Nine._ The Star Trek Universe belongs to Gene Roddenberry.

May contain sexually suggestive material.

Note: This story kind of fits in with my other story,_ Understanding Unknowns,_ but as I was writing it, I realized it works better as a separate narrative. Chronologically, it takes place during Chapter 10.

Background information: Taran'atar attacked and almost killed Kira, then was rescued by a group of Jem'hadar loyal to the changeling Laas, who wanted to use Taran'atar to kill Odo. Kira learned of a new Marquis movement, this time fighting against the Dominion, and decided to take care of it herself.

The Reilu Compromise

Chapter 1

Finding the Marquis base had not been quite as difficult as Kira anticipated. Once her runabout, the _Rio Colca_, was in the Badlands, she simply had to follow the first ship she detected. It led to a moon without an atmosphere, but with an underground cave system that had been filled with oxygen. There were many ships on the surface and in orbit around the moon.

Kira decided that she shouldn't be seen in a Starfleet uniform, so she replicated a utilitarian, grayish-beige dress in the style of what she wore during the occupation, then beamed down to the sublunar base.

The new Marquis was made up of several different Alpha Quadrant species, including Bajorans and humans, but mostly Cardassians. She even noticed a few Betazoids; apparently that enlightened species wasn't immune to desires for revenge. Kira tried to stay clear of them, and guarded her thoughts carefully. She also avoided the Bajorans, afraid they might recognize her. Fortunately, there were surprisingly few of them.

She tried to blend in, and soon had the layout of the base figured out. There was an ever-expanding system of personal quarters, a large communal dining area, and the largest war room she had ever seen. The conditions were generally better than what she endured during her time in the resistance. The leaders of the new Marquis, Kira learned, were a Cardassian man named Ilik Oreshk and a half Betazoid, half Trill woman named Awikdor Teyan.

A few days after she arrived, an announcement was sent out that anyone who wanted to volunteer for a dangerous mission should report to the war room. Everyone who entered was required to submit to a blood test at the door. Kira was relieved to see she was the only Bajoran in the room, which meant she wasn't likely to be recognized. The leaders sat on a raised platform while the volunteers took seats arranged in a circular pattern facing them.

Only about a fifth of the available seats were filled when the entrance was closed. Then Oreshk stood and took a step forward, assuming the dominant position that Kira still hated to see a Cardassian in. "I'm pleased to see how many of you are willing to risk your life for the security of the Alpha Quadrant," he began. "What I'm about to tell you is not to leave this room. The Dominion has not aggressively attacked the Alpha Quadrant for many months, which means they are that much stronger than they would be if they did. They are building up their forces in preparation for renewed conquest. Every ship that they do not send against us now is being added to the forces we will soon be faced with in our own star systems."

Kira couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Even now, Jem'hadar ships are amassing near the Wormhole, far enough away to not be immediately obvious to our sensors. There are far more of them than there are of us. The only hope we have is to get behind their lines. I'm asking for volunteers for a long term secret mission within Dominion space. Anyone who has close family or other commitments, or is not willing to give their lives for this cause, should leave the room now. The decision is yours, and will not impact your standing in our organization."

A few people stood up and left. Kira watched them, then returned her attention to the platform. She thought she noticed the half-Betazoid second-in-command watching her for an instant, but then Teyan shifted her eyes elsewhere, and Kira wondered if she imagined it.

Oreshk nodded at those who remained, then concluded. "Due to the sensitive nature of this mission, we can't tell you where we will be going, or how, or why. Each of you should pack your belongings and meet here at 0500 tomorrow morning." He gave a curt nod as a dismissal.

But before anyone could reach the door, Teyan stood up and issued an order. "Guards, restrain this woman." She pointed a long, sharp finger directly at Kira.

Before she had time to come up with a strategy, the guards had phasers locked on her. As other volunteers watched curiously, she was marched to the platform. Oreshk narrowed his eyes at her before turning to Teyan. "Who is she?" he asked simply.

Teyan almost laughed. "You don't recognize the infamous Kira Nerys, Ilik?"

Oreshk turned back to Kira. His eyes were wide with fascination. "Are you sure?"

Teyan locked eyes with Kira. The Betazoid/Trill woman was slender and attractive, middle-aged, and resembled an older version of Molly O'Brien with wavy black hair and faint Trill spots. Her eyes were dark chocolate-brown and as cold as ice. "Yes. I am."

Oreshk stepped toward her. "First of all, it's an honor to finally meet you, and thank you for helping to free my home from the Dominion." He held out his hand in the humanoid greeting, but before Kira could decide to take it he backhanded her hard across the face. "And may you languish in whatever hell the Bajorans believe in for not killing the Founder when you had the chance!"

Teyan looked disapproving, but didn't make a move to stop him. "I'm surprised she dared come herself, conspicuous as she must know she is."

"Whatever her plan is," Oreshk fumed as he paced away from the prisoner, "we should put her in confinement until our ships are through the Wormhole, then send her back to her station before they send someone out to look for her. We'll have to find whatever ship she came on and erase the navigational log."

"May I have a word with you, Ilik?" Teyan grasped her superior's arm and pulled him out of earshot. Whatever they were discussing quickly devolved into an argument.

Kira didn't take her eyes off them. Her face throbbed, and she was sure she would soon have a livid bruise. But in spite of the leader's temper, there was no question in Kira's mind that Teyan was the more dangerous.

The argument came to an abrupt stop, and from the slightly smug look on Teyan's face, she had apparently won.

Oreshk frowned. His face was creased with hardship rather than age, but the sharp lines refined his chiseled features to a handsomeness even Kira could appreciate. "We're bringing her with us," he announced. "Take her to the _Damar_ and confine her in the brig."

"She probably came in a runabout," Teyan added. "She must have hidden her commbadge in her quarters; we would have detected it if she wore it here. See if you can find it. A Federation runabout could be useful."

The two leaders continued their discussion, but Kira couldn't hear it as the guards dragged her away.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Paramount owns _Star Trek Deep Space Nine._ The Star Trek Universe belongs to Gene Roddenberry.

Chapter 2

The _Damar_ was clearly one of the many warships thrown together at the height of the Dominion War. Though modern, it had a haphazard appearance, giving the impression that one loose screw could cause the whole thing to fall apart.

There were more holding cells than a ship that size should have needed, and they seemed to have been designed with a much smaller than average species in mind. Kira couldn't even lock her legs out on the hard, narrow bunk. Only a single guard was posted, a muscular and sharp-eyed human woman. Kira found it a little insulting that they thought she only needed one guard. And she'd seen jumja stands that would be harder to break out of.

But she waited. She slept a little on the uncomfortable bunk, then pretended to sleep as she formulated plans in her head. It would have been easier if she knew what Oreshk was up to. The ship began moving. Food was brought (a barely-tolerable mush which Kira ate very slowly). Eventually, an Andorian arrived to relieve the guard. For a split second, the eyes of the guards were turned away from the cell. Kira jumped on the opportunity. Using a rag torn from her skirt as insulation, she stabbed the handle of her spoon, which she had broken to a sharp point, into the wall where she knew the circuits for the forcefield would be.

Both guards turned their weapons towards the sound of the forcefield shorting out, but Kira was already in action. The human fired a shot from her phaser, which incinerated the meal tray Kira had tossed into its path. The next second, the human was unconscious. The Andorian swung a heavy fist toward her, but Kira rolled out of the way. She came up holding the other guard's phaser, which she fired even before fully regaining her footing. The Andorian went down.

When she was sure both guards were unconscious, she dragged them into one of the other holding cells and activated the forcefield. Then she found the nearest Jefferies Tube access.

It took her hours of crawling through the cramped and dirty Jefferies Tubes to finally find the captain's quarters. They were empty, fortunately. Kira quickly accessed the computer and checked the ship's heading. "What are you planning?" she asked the absent captain. She found, to her disappointment, that they had already passed through the Wormhole. Their heading would take them to Ulobi 8, a small frozen planet just inside Dominion space. The atmosphere had oxygen from photosynthetic algae that lived on the ice around the equator, but the planet sustained no other lifeforms. Kira couldn't find any strategic significance or natural resource. Then she remembered the Marquis base in the Badlands, and checked if the planet had any cave systems. Not only did the computer answer affirmative, but a map of the cave system and the exact location of the underground base were provided in the planetary report. Kira found a tricorder and downloaded the information into it.

The next item of business was to find a way off the ship. She discovered that her runabout was being held in the _Damar_'s shuttlebay.

She emerged from the Jefferies Tube into the quiet shuttlebay half an hour later. She had to both escape from the ship and disable their sensors to hide her escape. That part she was confident she could accomplish by interfacing the _Colca_'s computer system with the _Damar_'s and sabotaging their sensors.

She opened the runabout's door and found herself facing a Cardassian man with a phaser. "Hello Captain Kira," he said pleasantly. "Oreshk would like a word with you."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Paramount owns _Star Trek Deep Space Nine._ The Star Trek Universe belongs to Gene Roddenberry.

Chapter 3

The Cardassian guard took Kira to the wardroom, where Oreshk and Teyan were waiting. Her escort forced her into a seat across the table from Oreshk and trained his phaser on her.

Oreshk didn't appear angry, or even hostile. Just…disappointed. "I knew it was a mistake to bring you on this mission," he said.

Teyan said nothing. Her face remained expressionless.

"I really don't want you to get hurt. Teyan thought you would make a useful hostage if the Founder known as Odo finds us, but I disagree; a changeling wouldn't hesitate to destroy any solid. They are by nature treacherous and self-serving." He stood up and started pacing, getting into rant mode. "What the Federation fails to realize is just how treacherous the Dominion is. They actually expect them to abide by the terms of their treaty! So while the Federation, the Romulans, the Klingons, and the Cardassians rebuild from the devastation of the war, the Dominion is allowed to build up their forces to launch a second attack. I don't know if I can do anything to stop them, but I am _going_ to try. While I live, the Dominion will not be allowed to do to another planet what it did to Cardassia!"

"You're not going to convert her, Ilik," Teyan said calmly.

"But I want her to understand why I'm doing this. And if anyone can appreciate fighting for a lost cause, I believe she can."

"The Dominion is not going to strike against the Alpha Quadrant again as long Odo has any say in it," Kira said.

Oreshk rolled his eyes. "That's what _she_ said you'd say," he nodded at Teyan, "but I can assure you, any feelings you think this Founder has for you are entirely the product of your imagination. Founders are incapable of compassion or mercy, or even justice." He looked at her with pity. "No changeling could ever love a solid."

Kira kept her eyes on Oreshk, but paid attention to Teyan's expression. The woman remained rigidly impassive.

"You're wrong," Kira said simply.

"Perhaps I am, but I don't believe so. And what do we have to act on except our beliefs?"

Food was brought to the table and set before Oreshk, Teyan, and Kira.

"Finally," Teyan exclaimed. She began eating the reddish brown mush with the passion she hadn't shown towards anything else. She looked up when she sensed Kira watching her. "I was with the resistance during the occupation of Betazed," she said. "Food was a luxury. And I assure you this tastes better than it looks."

"It would pretty much have to," Kira replied. She made no move to test that assertion.

Oreshk ate more slowly. He didn't seem to care about the food's flavor. He made eating look like a routine chore. "It isn't poisoned," he told Kira. "As I said, I have no interest in killing you."

Kira spoke aloud without really meaning to. "But you're planning on killing the man I love, and that's almost the same thing."

Oreshk scowled. "He's not a man. He's a…living deception, a member of a race of false gods and genocidal killers."

Kira lunged across the table. She didn't know exactly what she planned on doing if she got her hands on Oreshk, but she was sure she would enjoy it.

Teyan's hand shot out and gripped Kira's wrist with surprising strength. "Ilik, don't bait her," she reprimanded gently, as though he were a careless child.

"Put the phaser down," Oreshk ordered the guard.

Teyan released her grip, and Kira retreated to her chair, glaring at Oreshk.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, sounding sincere, "but I truly believe you're clinging to a lie, and I want you to realize that before it hurts you, or you endanger the Alpha Quadrant because of it."

A communicator chimed. "Bridge to Oreshk."

"Oreshk here," he said.

"We've reached the Ulobi System. We'll enter orbit around Ulobi 8 in four minutes."

"Have the team assemble in the transporter room. I'll meet them there shortly."

The voice from the bridge returned a moment later. "Oreshk, we have another problem: there appears to be a flotilla of Dominion ships moving toward our location."

Oreshk frowned deeply, fear edging into his expression. "What are they doing here?" He considered his options. "Oreshk to Alpha Team."

"Falik here," came the reply.

"Beam down to the surface without me. Activate the transporter dampener as soon as you reach the base site."

"Understood. When can we expect you to join us?"

"Soon. I have a crisis to take care of first. Oreshk out."

Teyan pushed her tray of food away from her and stood up to join Oreshk. "If they detect us, we may be a match for one or two Jem'hadar ships, but not a flotilla. I suggest we abort the mission."

"No," said Oreshk. "This is a piece of bad luck, but we didn't really expect everything to go smoothly, did we?"

"If the Jem'hadar detect the base beneath the planet's surface…"

"By that time we'll have the transporter dampener online. If they beam to within ten kilometers of it, their patterns will dissipate."

"But if they beam in outside the limits of the dampener, travel through the cave system to the base, and destroy the transporter dampener, then not only will our people down there be doomed, but our mission to set up the photon canon on the planet's surface will fail."

Oreshk glanced at Kira. "Perhaps, my dear Teyan, you should refrain from revealing our plans in front of the hostage."

"Who is she going to tell?" Teyan retorted without a trace of chagrin. She produced a phaser, which she leveled at Kira. "I suggest we take her to the bridge with us. If the Dominion doesn't want her killed, now is the time to utilize that advantage."

"Very well." Oreshk nodded stiffly.

He led the group to the bridge. Teyan walked behind Kira, pressing the phaser against her back.

The bridge was manned by a skeleton crew, fully half of them Cardassian.

"On screen," Oreshk ordered as soon as he set foot in the room.

An image of about a dozen Jem'hadar ships appeared.

"Sir," said a puzzled communications officer, "the flotilla is under attack…by other Jem'hadar warships!"

Oreshk flinched. "What is the meaning of this?" he wondered.

They watched as a fierce battle raged in the heavens. The ships under attack formed a barrier around one single ship, which the attackers seemed to be taking care not to hit.

"There's a Founder on that ship," Kira stated.

Oreshk turned and stared at her for a long moment, then turned to the pilot. "She's right! Henam, take us within range and fire on that ship's shield generator."

"Sir?" the young female Cardassian questioned.

"If we can beam that Founder on to our ship, we'll have a guarantee of safe passage through Dominion space. What better hostage is there than someone's god?"

"Understood, sir," Henam complied.

Fortunately for them, the Jem'hadar ships were too busy firing at each other to turn against the _Damar_.

One of the smaller attacking Jem'hadar ships flew through the defensive formation and began shooting at the lead ship's shield generator.

"Looks like someone beat us to it," Teyan commented dryly.

Oreshk spat a mild Cardassian swearword. "Riopo," he said to a Bolian officer, "as soon as the ship's shield is down, scan for the changeling and beam it on board before the other ship has the chance."

"No problem."

"Of course, that will mean we'll have to drop shields before the other ship does."

"Don't worry, Teyan. As soon as we have the Founder on board, no one will dare fire at us."

Kira had a bad feeling in her gut. Whatever Oreshk might tell his inferiors, his hatred for the Founders was so great that he might just kill it as soon as they beamed it over. Kira didn't want that to happen to any Founder (with the exception of the one that seduced Odo, perhaps), and Dominion ships attacking Dominion ships seemed ominous in light of Taran'atar's rescue.

"How many Jem'hadar are on that attacking ship?" she asked.

"What does it matter to you?" Oreshk demanded.

"If we drop shields, and they drop shields, what will stop them from beaming over here as soon as they realize what we intend to do? We…you should be ready for them."

"She has a point," Teyan conceded.

"I'm reading one single lifesign on that ship," said Henam.

Kira somehow knew it was Taran'atar. She sprang into action. First she elbowed Teyan in the face. The woman fell down, stunned. Kira then leaped to Riopo, pushing him out of the chair. Phaser fire flashed around her, but she paid no attention to it. She reprogrammed the transporter to beam the Founder down to the cave system, just outside the defensive barrier, and activated it the instant the ship's shield fell. The attacking Jem'hadar ship began firing on them.

Teyan jumped to her feet, pushed Kira out of the chair, and returned fire on the Jem'hadar ship. The Founder's ship fired at it, as well. Suddenly, it exploded in a bright, brief, silent blare of light.

As her fingers flew unbelievably fast across the computer screen, Teyan relayed the information she was receiving. "It dropped shields…the Jem'hadar beamed to the Founder's location on the surface a second before the ship exploded." She regarded Kira coldly. "I don't know what you hoped to accomplish with that little stunt, but I don't think it's going to work." She picked up her phaser and fired.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Paramount owns _Star Trek Deep Space Nine._ The Star Trek Universe belongs to Gene Roddenberry.

Chapter 4

When Kira regained consciousness, she inexplicably found herself on a Dominion ship, a hypospray pressed against her neck.

"She's awake," said a familiar voice.

"Weyoun?" she asked as she blinked against the brightness. "Why did you bring me here?"

"We didn't," Weyoun answered. "Your ship's transporter beamed you over as soon as the phaser hit you. Kalaran thinks the transporter had been programmed to lock on to the phaser's energy signature."

A female Vorta—Kalaran, Kira assumed—appeared behind him. "I thought you might have programmed the transporter yourself, but I see from your reaction that you didn't. Though I assume you are responsible for beaming Odo to the planet?"

Kira jolted up. "What happened to the ship? And the attacking ships?"

"The enemy Jem'hadar vessels were all destroyed, at heavy cost," Kalaran said. "The ship that was carrying you retreated."

"Odo…" Kira recalled the distressing sequence of events. She wasn't at all surprised that the "Founder" they had detected was Odo, but it certainly made the situation more desperate. "He's…I think the attacker was Taran'atar…I think Odo's life is in danger."

Weyoun's eyes widened. "You think Taran'atar would kill Odo?"

"Yes," she had to keep herself from shouting. "You have to beam him up!"

"We can't," said one of the Jem'hadar. "There's some kind of transporter dispersal field at those coordinates on the planet. It's expanding. Odo's location is now within the boundary of that field.

"Then beam me down as close to him as you can," Kira ordered.

"You're no match for a Jem'hadar," the one who had spoken said. "I'll beam down with my team."

"No you won't," Kalaran said. "You're too valuable to us, First Rinak'vaka. You're Odo's most loyal Jem'hadar. We can't risk your death. Send a team down under the command of Second Hin'kotar."

"I don't send my men into situation I wouldn't go into myself," Rinak'vaka argued.

"It doesn't matter." The speaker was another Jem'hadar.

Kalaran looked at him with subdued loathing. "Do you have some insight to share, Tenth?"

"You're no match for Taran'atar; he's an Honored Elder who's defeated teams of Jem'hadar before. I'm the only one here who even approaches his skill and experience."

Kalaran didn't look happy, but she also didn't look like she could think of an argument.

"You don't have to worry about me; it's true that I disagree with Odo, but you must realize I would never harm a Founder."

Kalaran looked to Rinak'vaka. "I'm leaving this to your judgment, First."

He stared hard at the Tenth. "He is telling the truth. But he won't go alone."

"Of course not," Kira piped up, afraid that she was being ignored in this obvious internal dispute. "I'm going with him."

"I don't think Odo would like it if we sent you to your death," Kalaran said.

"I think she should go," Weyoun argued. "Kira Nerys is an accomplished warrior, and she cares about Odo's safety nearly as much as we do."

"We're wasting time arguing about it!" Rinak'vaka roared. "I want two volunteers to accompany Jolin'yobek and Kira. I will not send any of you unwillingly to a probable death."

Every Jem'hadar stood at attention, desiring to be chosen for the mission. Rinak'vaka looked at them with evident pride. "Third and Eighth," he said quietly, "I think the two of you are most qualified for this type of mission."

The two who had been selected joined Jolin'yobek, looking as happy as Jem'hadar could. Kira also stood up to stand beside them, too worried about Odo to be afraid of being surrounded by her former enemies.

"Very well," said Kalaran, "I'll beam you as close to their location as I can."

"Here," Weyoun tossed a small device to Kira. "It's an energy dampener. It will render energy weapons useless, which will protect Odo, but not the rest of you."

"Thank you," Kira breathed.

First Rinak'vaka handed her his kar'takin. "I hope you know how to use one of these?"

She nodded, accepting the heavy ax-like weapon.

Rinak'vaka faced the group. "Odo teaches us that victory is the third most desirable outcome of conflict, after avoidance and peaceful cessation. But victory is the only option now." He took a deep breath. "Odo is the only changeling who cares about us, our lives. He dreams of a new Dominion without needless shedding of blood, where everyone is free. We believe in his dream. He is our Founder," he meant the word for the first time. "Victory is _his_ life."

The two volunteer Jem'hadar nodded.

Kalaran activated the transporter.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Paramount owns _Star Trek Deep Space Nine._ The Star Trek Universe belongs to Gene Roddenberry. I own nothing.

Chapter 5

Kira and the three Jem'hadar materialized in the dark of a chilly, damp cave. Kira activated the energy dampener and slipped it into one of her skirt's many pockets. She remembered the tricorder with the map of the cave system in it, which she pulled out. "This way," she said, leading them in the general direction of the Marquis base, where the expanding transporter dispersal field originated. She could sense the Jem'hadar behind her by the heat they gave off and a kind of vague sixths sense that anyone who survived as many battles as she had knew to pay attention to. They were completely silent. She had the feeling that the Eighth and Third were keeping an eye on Tenth as well as watching for Taran'atar and Odo.

Minutes crept by. The only things to be seen in the cave were the brown, smooth shapes of rock formations that faded in and out of the light of Kira's tricorder, the only sounds were the dripping of water from the ceiling and the distant drone of an underground river.

Taran'atar unshrouded in front of them. He aimed a phaser rifle at Kira. "It will be a relief to finally kill you," he said before pulling the trigger.

Nothing happened.

With a shriek of rage, Taran'atar cast aside the rifle and pulled out his kar'takin. Third leaped at him, then fell to the ground, a gush of blood spilling from his slit throat. Kira prepared to strike.

"Kira, duck!"

She heard Eighth's warning in time to dodge Tenth, who rushed past her with his kar'takin swinging. He attacked Taran'atar furiously. For several seconds they traded blows. Eighth joined the battle.

"How can you plot to kill a god?" Tenth demanded to know.

"I plot to kill a false god! He has fooled us all! We are the master race! We are the Jem'hadar! The Founders who enslaved us must die!"

Tenth Jolin'yobek brought his weapon down hard, but Taran'atar halted it, then stabbed him with a knife in his other hand. He dropped both weapons and broke Eighth's neck with a quick jerk. He kicked the dying Tenth as hard as he could. "You pathetic worm. You are a disgrace to our species." Then he looked around for Kira, but she had vanished.

Eighth had pushed Kira to the ground before attacking Taran'atar. She'd watched in horror as her two Jem'hadar allies died before she could join the fight. She knew she was no match for Taran'atar on her own—he was stronger than her, more cunning, and he knew her capabilities as well as she knew his—and that her only chance was to run and hide. She now folded herself into a tight crevasse on the cave wall, hiding the light of her tricorder.

"I'm surprised at you, Kira," Taran'atar called. "I never knew you to play the coward."

She fumbled to deactivate the energy dampener in the pitch dark.

"I will tell your beloved Odo how you faltered at the last, how you finally accepted your weakness…and your inferiority…How you valued your own pathetic life more than his."

Kira gave a silent, formless prayer to the Prophets, as she so often did in these situations.

"I'm sure it will be a great comfort to him to know you will be awaiting him in the afterlife." This time he spoke more quietly. His voice was right in front of her.

She uncovered her tricorder. Taran'atar appeared suddenly in its pale glow, staring right at her. He smirked down at her. She seemed so small and weak, huddling like a frightened baby animal in a corner, cowering. He failed to see the defiant gleam in her eyes.

"But he won't be sent there by you." She fired her phaser at the highest setting through the material of her pocket. Taran'atar fell to the cave floor. His last thought, before the darkness claimed him, was how ironic it was that he would die right after figuring out his purpose in life, and how tragic that he wouldn't be able to fulfill that purpose: to kill every single Founder, starting with Odo.

Kira approached the body cautiously, holding her phaser at the ready. She knelt next to Taran'atar and felt for a pulse. She was surprised to experience a wave of sadness at the realization that he was really dead. She had come very close to considering Taran'atar a friend. He saved her life more than once. She would miss him.

She began to chant a prayer, which included the Jem'hadar who died for her, as well as the one who died from her.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Paramount owns _Star Trek Deep Space Nine._ The Star Trek Universe belongs to Gene Roddenberry. I own nothing.

Chapter 6

Odo found himself in complete darkness. It was cold, and he could detect a faint dank scent with his newly-learned olfactory capabilities.

The last thing he remembered was being beamed off Kalaran's ship, the _Shkalek_. He had been expecting that. When the attacking Jem'hadar targeted their shield generator, he expected to be beamed off as soon as it failed, and then the _Shkalek_ would be destroyed. But he hadn't expected to be beamed into this place, which was obviously _not_ a ship.

He saw a flash of light. Someone else had beamed down. That someone else turned on a flashlight.

Odo became a stalagmite.

Taran'atar—Odo identified him by the sound of his breathing—must have expected a trick like that. He turned his phaser rifle on wide-beam and started firing around the cave systematically. It would only be a matter of time before he found Odo.

Another, fainter flash of transporter beam glowed through the cave. Taran'atar turned off the rifle's light and shrouded.

Odo turned into a small insect and flew in the direction the light came from. Unfortunately, his progress was severely impeded by the number of stalactites he kept hitting.

Minutes later, the unmistakable reverberations of kar'takin battle echoed off the walls. The noise only lasted for a minute. Then Odo heard Taran'atar's voice, but couldn't make out the words. Then he heard phaser fire. Then silence.

Odo landed and assumed the shape of a snake. He slithered over the uneven stony surface, following the faint smell of Jem'hadar. He detected another humanoid as well, one he didn't recognize.

When he slithered around a warm body, he shifted to his humanoid form and caused the palm of his hand to become a light. By its beam, he recognized Jolin'yobek, Niva'Sebek, and Fol'kotin.

A soft sound drifted from the darkness, a Bajoran chant for the dead. It took him a moment to realize that he wasn't imagining it.

He followed the sound. Soon he also saw a dull glow, like what would come from the display screen of a tricorder. Turning a corner, he spotted the supine form of Taran'atar. A second later, he discerned the less-distinct shape of a woman kneeling over him, her arms held out in the Bajoran prayer form.

The voice was familiar, as was the face, but Odo didn't allow himself to believe it was really her.

"N-Nerys?" he asked softly.

Kira abruptly stopped. She opened her eyes and rose to her feat. She couldn't see Odo, at first. Then he stepped close enough to reflect the weak light. He looked confused, disbelieving.

"Odo," she whispered.

His eyes bore into her, trying to understand her presence. She looked down at her clothing. Her dress was torn, charred, and bloodstained, and not very flattering to begin with. She wished—as absurd as it would be in the present circumstances—that she could be wearing the beautiful Earth-style gown Odo had given her to wear to Vic's. She'd learned from Vic only recently that Odo first saw the dress on the Lola Crystal hologram. As much as she hated the idea of a hologram in her image, Kira found the story very amusing.

The look on Odo's face transformed to one of raw adoration, and she realized it didn't matter at all to him what her clothes looked like.

"I take it I owe you my life," he said, glancing at Taran'atar's corpse.

"I had help," Kira said sadly.

Odo nodded, remembering the bodies of the fallen.

Kira examined the grief that mixed into his expression. He'd known those Jem'hadar. They were…Kira wasn't sure. His crew? His guards? His friends? They were something to him, and now they were gone. She placed her hand on his cheek. "I'm sorry," she said.

He looked uncertain, but lifted his hand and pressed it against hers, as though afraid she would pull away. "I'm sorry Taran'atar turned against you," he replied.

She blinked, suddenly understanding that he blamed himself for that. "It doesn't matter" She took his hand in both of hers and kissed it. "I've missed you, Odo."

"I've missed you, too." Slowly and hesitantly, he moved closer to her and placed a soft, undemanding kiss on her lips.

He pulled back slightly, and they gazed at each other for a long moment before Kira remembered their predicament. "Listen…you know about the transporter dissipater?"

"What transporter dissipater?" he asked.

"There's a transporter dissipater," she said, "and its range is expanding. We can't transport in or out of this location anymore. Oreshk is probably going to beam into this cave system soon, if he hasn't already, and I don't want to know what he'll do if he finds us."

"Who's Oreshk?"

"He's…" Kira realized it could take a while to explain. "I'll tell you on the way." She broke away from him and picked up the tricorder from where she'd dropped it. Then she grabbed Odo's hand and started walking in the direction he'd come from. "We have to get to the base before he does. And when we get there, we have to deactivate the transporter dissipater."

"I'll take your word for it."

Kira smiled, then commenced with the promised explanation. "Oreshk is a Cardassian malcontent who wants revenge against the Dominion. He doesn't trust changelings, not even you."

"I can hardly blame him," Odo noted.

"He's organized a new Marquis, targeted against the Dominion. From what I understand, they chose this planet to build some kind of weapon on."

"And how did you get involved?"

"When I found out about the Marquis I traveled to the Badlands to investigate."

"Yourself? Alone?"

"Yes," she admitted. "I was recognized and captured. They brought me as a hostage."

"But you escaped, obviously."

"Yes I did. I suppose." Her eyebrow crinkled as she contemplated that. "I'm not entirely clear on how that happened, actually."

They came to the bodies of Kalaran's Jem'hadar and stopped for a moment of silence over the dead.

"I beamed you here to keep Taran'atar from reaching you," Kira explained. "These three and I came down after Taran'atar did. They protected me."

"They were loyal," Odo said. "They believed in the cause. They're irreplaceable."

"They were happy to give their lives for you."

Odo frowned. He hated the idea of people giving their lives for him. "And what about you?" he asked, turning to her. "You didn't have to come with them."

She regarded him. "Yes I did," she said, paraphrasing something he'd said to her a couple of years before. It seemed like another lifetime.

He couldn't think of a response, and instead resumed walking. "How long is it going to take us to get there?" he inquired, still not entirely clear on where "there" was, or what awaited them.

Kira let go of his hand to tap some calculations into her tricorder, then took his hand again, as much for insurance against tripping on the slick, bumpy cave floor as the emotional connection it represented. "Assuming a difficult terrain, six hours."

"And once we get there, can we expect resistance?"

"Oh yes," she answered. "I'm not sure how many, but we should assume they'll be armed."

"Good to have that cleared up."


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Remember the previous disclaimers? Nothing's changed.

Warning: This chapter contains fluffy romance and sexually suggestive material.

Spoiler alert: vague references to events in _World of Star Trek Deep Space Nine: the Dominion_ and explicit references to my other story_ Understanding Unknowns._

Chapter 7

Kira stumbled slightly as she walked through the cave. Odo stretched his arm around her to steady her. "Thanks," she said.

He didn't let her go immediately. His face was inches away from hers, and even in the dim light, he could see the telltale heaviness of her eyelids. "How long has it been since you slept?"

"I'm fine, Odo," she insisted. "And right now, we have more important things to worry about than sleep."

He sighed. "You can be so stubborn," he told her. But he continued on without further protest.

"And you aren't?" she retorted teasingly.

"I'll have you know I'm the least stubborn person I've ever met."

"Right. How many times did you threaten to resign? Did you even keep count?"

He scoffed. "You're over exaggerating."

"It was just kind of a standing threat, wasn't it."

"No. Besides, that wasn't stubborn, it was just…childish."

"Childish?" she asked, amazed that Odo would consider anything he ever did to be childish.

"Petty, even." He continued, slightly embarrassed, "I grew up a lot during my time on the station. I think you had a lot to do with that."

Kira cast a surprised glance at him, then returned her eyes to the tricorder. "I've grown up a lot, too, since first coming to the station. I used to be so…I'd been a fighter so long, I didn't know how to be anything else. That mentality took a long time to break. You helped me with that, too."

A protracted silence fell over them. In the quiet, the darkness of the cave became overpowering. With hours ahead of them before they reached their uncertain goal, and only each other for company, the silence demanded to be filled.

"Taran'atar escaped from Deep Space Nine with the help of a group of Jem'hadar," Kira mentioned. "Do you have any idea who might have been behind that attack?"

The attack on the station was news to Odo. "Was anyone hurt?" he asked before he could answer her question.

"Yes…four people died. We almost lost Deputy Arkra, but he recovered, thank the Prophets."

"I'm sorry." Odo knew she took personal responsibility for the lives of everyone serving under her, but because he sent Taran'atar to Deep Space Nine in the first place, he felt responsible for the attack. "I do have an idea who ordered Taran'atar's jailbreak."

"Who?"

"Laas."

Kira jolted. She'd never expected to hear from Laas again…not since she secretly freed him from the same holding cell in which Taran'atar was kept. "Laas?" she asked. "Why would he do that?"

"Probably because he didn't think any of the Jem'hadar under his command would be willing to kill me."

"Laas is trying to kill you?"

Odo thought carefully about how he wanted to explain the situation. "Laas believes the salvation of the changelings can be achieved only through military conquest. I think we have a better chance if we try to peacefully work with the solids as equals."

"I know about your conflicting opinions, Odo," she reminded him. "What do you mean by the 'salvation' of changelings? You make it sound like they're still in danger of extinction."

He didn't explain directly. "I've learned a lot from my time in the Great Link. For example, one of the more experienced changelings taught me how to synthesize nerve receptors required for a sense of smell. I'm still working on my sense of taste, but a lot of changelings can duplicate an entire digestive system."

"I suppose that would have been necessary for passing themselves off as solids," Kira said. She often wondered about the changelings who masqueraded as government officials and other strategically-placed humanoids during and before the Dominion War. Any slight crack in their façade could have exposed them. They had to fool not only their underlings and associates, but also their friends, their spouses, in some cases even their pets. She'd read reports spouses of people replaced by changelings made after the deception had been uncovered, but those accounts always seemed to leave things out, or be very vague on certain details, such as one which reported "No significant change in manner or frequency of intimate encounters."

"I also learned something else about changelings," he added in a solemn tone. "In a way, there is only one changeling in the Great Link, and in another way, there are many, as the Founder once told me. But the 'many' aren't infinite. In fact, as far as I could tell there were only a few thousand. No new changelings can be formed. What I used to think of as 'infant' changelings simply haven't learned how to shapeshift yet; they aren't older or younger than the other changelings, just less experienced."

"Are you saying your people are completely incapable of reproducing?" Kira asked in dismay.

"Yes. It won't happen for millennia, perhaps, but we will die out unless we find a way to prevent it."

This news saddened Kira, which surprised her. After all, she'd only ever met one changeling that she could stand. But she loved Odo, and so she cared about his people for his sake. Also, she found that she liked the _idea_ of shapeshifters, and would consider their extinction to be a grievous loss to the galaxy. "I'm sorry, Odo."

"Laas and I," Odo began in a tone that told her he didn't want to dwell on it, "have taken opposite positions on how to run the Dominion. The other changelings…aren't getting involved."

"They're remaining neutral?" she asked skeptically.

"Something like that."

Kira could tell there was something he was keeping from her, but she decided not to push it. "It must be hard on you to have that much responsibility _plus_ someone trying to kill you."

"I knew going back to the Link could be dangerous. That's why…"

"Why what?" she pressed.

He didn't want to tell her. He was horrified that he'd almost let it slip, because if he told her that he didn't want her to join him in the Dominion because he thought it was safer for her on Deep Space Nine, she would do it, not just because she would then know that he _wanted_ her to join him, but also because she would resent that he was making decisions regarding her safety for her. He had other reasons he didn't want her to come: she had her career to think about, Deep Space Nine needed her, Bajor needed her, and he didn't want her to leave her friends and her people to be with him. He knew how painful it was to be alone in a quadrant. But mostly he was afraid for her life. He was protected by the fact that very few Jem'hadar would harm any Founder, but they wouldn't hesitate to use her against him. He couldn't ask the woman he loved to live like that, even if it meant losing her.

"How are things going back on the station?" he asked to change the subject.

"Fine," she lied.

"'Fine'?" he scoffed. "Please. When are things on the station ever 'fine'?"

"Well, there is a potential catastrophe looming, now that you mention it. Nothing too out of the ordinary. And there's a new café on the Promenade. Run by a Tzenkethi woman. She's very…interesting. She can talk for hours about the history and politics of her homeworld, but she brings a unique perspective to almost any subject. She makes good conversation and great raktajino. Her husband's the new security officer. Ro doesn't get along with him very well."

"There are many people Lieutenant Ro doesn't get along well very with."

"But she's a good investigator. Second best I've ever seen," she added playfully.

"I suppose running the station keeps you too busy for…much of a social life?"

It was Kira's turn to scoff. "Odo, if you're trying to ask if I'm seeing anyone romantically, I'm going to be very angry."

"Why?"

"Because you know me better than that! I'm…" she took a breath and continued more quietly. "I love you, and I'm not going to replace you."

"I don't want you to be lonely out of your sense of loyalty to me."

"I'm not lonely." She took his hand in both of hers and pressed it against her chest above her heart. "I have you right here. Always. You're…you're a part of my _pagh._" Then a stray thought occurred to her, and she dropped his hand. "But I certainly don't want you to be lonely out of any sense of loyalty to me."

Odo was struck speechless for a moment, deeply hurt by the suggestion that _he_ had replaced _her_. "How can you say that?" he asked. "You know how much I love you…how long I've loved you. You _are_ my _pagh_!"

"But if we both live out the span of our natural lives, you'll still have thousands of years ahead of you when I die. Don't tell me you're planning on being celibate for the rest of your existence."

"Maybe I'll fall in love with someone else someday," he said slowly. "But not while you're alive, and I can't imagine loving anyone else as much as I love you. Just like you'll never love me as much as you loved Bareil."

"You honestly think that?" Kira asked. "You believe that I loved him more than I love you?"

"Well, when the Bareil from the mirror universe came to the station you became involved with him even though you knew my feelings for you."

"You knew about that?"

"Of course I knew about that. No one can keep a secret on that station." Though he tried to hide it, that memory still stung. It hurt him more than anything else Kira had ever done. He told himself, at the time, that he didn't deserve Kira's love after betraying her while the Founder was on the station, but he thought they had both put that incident behind them. He could only ease the sting of it by telling himself it was _her_ Bareil she saw in him and was trying to recapture, and it had nothing to do with the man himself. That lying thief didn't deserve her.

Kira was torn between being angry that Odo held that fling against her and being apologetic that she disregarded his feelings. She tried to find a middle ground. "That doesn't count," she said as neutrally as she could. "We weren't ready to even think about taking our friendship to another level…"

"Maybe you weren't, but I had been ready for a long time."

"You weren't…self-confident enough…" That was a stretch, she realized. Not to mention insulting. "Or maybe I was just blind," she admitted. "I wasn't sure how I felt about you…if I wanted to even try being more than friends. But…" She took his hand again, interlocking their fingers. "Since when do we dwell on might-have-beens? I wish I'd known about your feelings for me years earlier, but just because I didn't fall in love with you until after we became a couple doesn't mean I love you less than you love me. I have no way to prove that, but I _did_ just risk my life fighting Taran'atar to save you."

"And I wish you hadn't," he blurted out. "I never want you to risk your life for me." He stopped walking and faced her, taking both of her hands. "Promise me you'll never risk your life for me again."

"You can't be serious."

"And yet, somehow, I am."

"You know I couldn't do that," she said incredulously.

"I know you keep your promises," he replied.

"Which is exactly why that's a promise I can't make! Would you be able to promise me the same thing?"

"Of course not. I would die for you. You know that."

"And I would die for you. Which would make a lot more sense, since my lifespan is like an insect's compared to yours."

"Kira, please…" He let go of one of her hands (the one still gripping the tricorder) to caress her face. "The universe is a bright place because you're in it. I'm not looking forward to the day I have to wake up and face a universe without you, and I want to delay that day as long as I can. And if you die because of me, all the centuries and millennia I would have to endure wouldn't be enough to dull my misery."

Kira shook her head, trying to think through the emotions clouding her mind. "The Dominion needs you. An entire quadrant is depending on you. That makes your life more valuable than mine."

"_Don't_ talk like that. Do you know how many years I spent venerating you? If I've accomplished anything, it's because of you. I think that's why powerful men—Bareil, Shakaar, Dukat—were attracted to you: you inspire greatness. Men would move planets from their orbits just to prove themselves worthy of you. So don't try to tell me that my life is worth more than yours." He sounded like he was pleading with her.

"Odo, you know about the things I've done, the crimes I'm guilty of. I've killed more people than I can count. You, though, you probably prevented more deaths than anyone else in the galaxy. Almost anyone would agree that you _deserve _to live more than I do, so you can't tell me not to sacrifice my life for you."

"I'm not as heroic as you give me credit for," he said reproachfully. "Remember that my future self caused _eight thousand_ people to cease to exist."

"That doesn't count," she argued. "That wasn't you; it was someone you would have become after two hundred years under very different circumstances."

"Still, it shows that I'm capable of doing horrible things…of choosing to destroy many lives to save one."

"What your Gaia self did wasn't 'horrible'. I knew him; you didn't. He wasn't evil, just…criminally in love. You've heard about the Intendant; that's who I would be if my life had been just a little bit different. I have to live with that, but I'm not her and I'm not responsible for the evil things that she does."

"And, you know, I can't honestly say I wouldn't do the same thing now, if faced with that choice," Odo continued as though Kira hadn't spoken. "When he linked with me, he showed me what it felt like…To wake up one morning and find out you'd been dead for years. To mourn alone because everyone else was already used to you being gone. He stayed by your grave for days, inconsolable. He preferred death to going through that again."

"And you think I wouldn't?" Kira retorted. "You think it wouldn't tear me apart to lose you? Do you have any idea how I felt when I left to help the Cardassian resistance thinking I would never see you alive again? I'd already watched two lovers die in front of me; it doesn't get any easier."

He looked at her with surprise. "Two? There was someone before Bareil?"

Kira took her time in answering. It was one of many incidences of her past she didn't like to talk about. "Fendor Laja, another resistance fighter in Shakaar's cell. I was seventeen, and crazy about him. He was gunned down by Cardassians during a mission. He was my first."

"That must have been hard for you."

"I might have saved him, but the mission came first." She looked up at Odo. "We both knew how dangerous it was. We accepted that…that either of us could die, and we couldn't let our feelings for each other get in the way."

"You couldn't risk the mission for him," Odo concluded.

"Exactly."

"Just like you can't risk your life for me."

"That's not what I'm trying to get at…" She sighed. "We're about to walk into a base where an unknown number of hostile, angry, armed people will be trying to protect something from us. Maybe we shouldn't be discussing this right now."

He seemed to acquiesce. "Do you still have the energy dampener you used on Taran'atar?"

"Yes, I…How did you know I used an energy dampener on Taran'atar?"

"I know he had a phaser rifle, but he used a kar'takin to kill the other Jem'hadar. Besides, I would certainly hope that between Kalaran, Rinak'vaka, and Weyoun _someone_ would have had the sense to send you with an energy dampener."

"You might not be chief of security anymore," Kira remarked with a smile, "but you're still an investigator. Yes, I still have the dampener."

"Then give it to me. I can activate it at the base and do whatever needs to be done…break whatever needs to be broken, without anyone getting hurt."

"I think that's a good idea, but I'm still going with you."

"It would make more sense," he said emphatically, "if I go alone. They may have weapons besides phasers, weapons that wouldn't hurt me but could kill you."

"Or they could find some way to deactivate the dampener. I _am_ going with you. I have more technical expertise than you do."

Odo looked away. He still hated the idea of Kira being endangered, but he couldn't think of any more arguments…and even if he could, he knew from the beginning that it was futile.

Kira reacted to his look of emotional desolation. "Odo…" She folded her arms around him and rested her head on his shoulder. He pulled her closer and kissed her hair. They remained like that for over a minute, then Kira broke the embrace. "We should keep going," she suggested. "We have a long way to go."

They journeyed in silence for a while, each contemplating what the other had said. Kira swayed slightly as she walked. When she stumbled again, Odo stopped and examined her. She was clearly fatigued. "You have to get some rest if we're going to have any chance at all," he informed her.

She smiled apologetically. "I guess I'm not quite as young as I used to be." She yawned. "The prospect of catching some sleep on a stone floor isn't quite as appealing as it used to be, either."

"You don't have to." He smiled mischievously. "When you travel with a changeling, you travel in style."

He morphed into a bed. The feet were different lengths in order to provide a perfectly level surface while on the extremely uneven floor of the cave, but otherwise it was the image of what a bed should be: tidy, a pretty grayish purple in color, a corner of the covers pulled back invitingly. Kira laughed and ran her hand over the sheets. They were as smooth as Tholian silk, and pleasantly warm. With a shrug, she climbed into the bed, snuggled between the covers, and sank into the luxuriously soft mattress.

As the sweet darkness of sleep began to wrap itself around her brain, the humor of the situation struck her. She wondered what Jadzia would have said about going to sleep _on_ a lover, rather than _with_ him.

Jadzia used to wheedle her for details about her sex life. Sometimes Kira would let a little hint slip out in an attempt to assuage her curiosity, though it never worked. The day after Odo kissed her for the first time, for example, she was a few minutes late coming to work. Jadzia gave her a look. Kira tried to act casual, but she probably wasn't fooling anyone, least of all Jadzia.

"_Did you sleep well?"_ _Jadzia asked._

"_Yes, as a matter of fact, I slept very well. Thank you for your concern, Lieutenant." _

_The Trill wore a sly smile. "I'm sure it was very…relaxing."_

_Kira nearly blushed. "I slept well. Anything else is none of your business."_

"_Of course it's not my business. Why would I care about my own business?" She dropped her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "Seriously, how was it? I won't breathe a word."_

"_It was…none of your business," Kira replied curtly._

"_Come on," Jadzia cajoled. Then she switched tactics. "Well, I suppose you do have to give him time…I'm sure he's just a little inexperienced."_

_Kira glared at her. "If you must know, it was exquisite." She then made a point of ignoring Jadzia and tried to get to her duties._

"_Can you be just a mite more specific?"_

_She sighed. "If I am, then will you leave me alone and let me get to work?"_

"_I promise," Jadzia assured her._

"_Have you ever felt like you were being worshiped? Has anyone ever treated you like every square centimeter of your body was sacred?" In spite of her intense effort not to, Kira spoke wistfully, and her breathing quickened as she thought back on the previous night._

"_Yes. As a matter of fact..."_

"_Then I guess you can imagine exactly what last night was like for me." _

She wasn't sure how many hours later she awoke. The idea of abandoning the warm comfort of the bed for the chilly cave air didn't exactly thrill her, so it took a few moments to force herself to move. As soon as she did, the bed retreated from beneath her, and in seconds she was sitting on the stone floor with Odo's arms wrapped tightly around her.

"Did you sleep well?" he inquired, echoing Jadzia's words from the dream.

She tilted her head back and rubbed her cheek against his. "Never better. Other beds could take lessons from you."

"I'm glad." She felt him smile. "I think your friend Oreshk came by here while you were sleeping, but he didn't see us. Though he might have seen a large rock protruding from the wall exactly where we are."

"Thank you, Odo. I suppose I should have thought of that last night."

"You humanoids have trouble thinking clearly when you're sleep deprived."

"True." She sighed contentedly and took a moment to enjoy the sensation of being so close to him. "We should be going," she said reluctantly.

"You're right," he agreed.

They both got to their feet. Kira pulled out her tricorder and checked their location on the map she'd downloaded earlier. "This way."

Neither said anything for a few minutes. Odo could tell Kira was thinking about something, but he decided she would say it when she was ready. She did. "Have you ever heard the story of the Reilu Brothers?" she eventually asked.

"No, I can't say I have."

"Reilu Kof'fa and Reilu Ichanar were two heroes of the Resistance. There's a statue of them in the capital."

"There are lots of statues in the capital. One good thing about war is that it creates plenty of heroes. Or maybe it just reveals the people who were heroes to begin with."

"I don't know about that," she said with a half smile. She then got on with saying what was on her mind. "The Reilu Brothers were members of the same cell. They were very devoted to each other. They had the same argument we had last night: neither one wanted to let the other risk his life. So they made a pact, which they repeated every time they went on a mission, that either they both made it out alive, or neither one of them made it out alive. After distinguishing themselves on many successful missions, they were sent to sabotage a communication relay at a Cardassian barracks. Kof'fa was captured and executed, so instead of escaping, Ichanar crawled through the building's ventilation ducts until he got to the central environmental control system. He blew it up, killing himself and half of the soldiers stationed there."

"I see why they're considered heroes," said Odo.

"Even before their deaths, their pact was known throughout the resistance. Some people even emulated it, though most cell leaders discouraged the practice. I personally thought it was kind of irresponsible: I'd lost my _entire_ family one way or another to the Occupation, but I kept fighting. I didn't have the luxury of giving up just because I lost people I loved more than life itself. I fought for Bajor. But now…I'm beginning to sympathize with them. I never understood before why their pact came to be known as the Reilu Compromise."

Odo wasn't sure he liked where she was heading with this line of thought. "Neither wanted the other to sacrifice his life for him, so in order to do their jobs they decided neither would."

"I intend to make sure we both survive this, Odo, but if you don't than I don't want to either. I'll keep you alive, or I'll die trying. I'm _done_ losing people I love."

He didn't want to believe her, but he knew she was sincere. "And I'm not going to live with the guilt of you dying for me. If you don't make it out alive, than neither will I."

"Then I guess we have ourselves a compromise," Kira concluded.

"It looks that way. But I still don't like it."

"That's the sign of a true compromise, Odo: no one's completely happy with it."

They were within three kilometers of where the tricorder indicated the base would be, but the cave was getting narrower and more difficult to negotiate. It was also angling upward, not enough to require them to climb, but enough to make walking more energy-intensive.

"Do you remember…" Kira glanced at Odo and promptly forgot what she was going to say. He looked like he was sweating. "How long has it been since you regenerated?"

He looked away, embarrassed by his limitations. "Almost sixteen hours."

An expression of worry creased her face. She didn't want them to be delayed any more than they already had been, but it didn't look like they had any choice. "If only I had something I could carry you in…" She glanced around the cave, hoping something would present itself, then thought about the things she carried with her. Nothing seemed sufficient.

"I'm sorry, Nerys." Odo clearly wouldn't be able to hold his form much longer.

"Wait," Kira looked distracted for a moment longer, then focused on Odo. "How small can you be when you regenerate?"

Odo had never really considered the question before. "I could condense to fit the size of whatever container I'm in, I think. Why?"

Even with the low light level, he could tell that she was blushing. "I have an idea, but you might not like it…"


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Paramount owns _Star Trek Deep Space Nine._ The Star Trek Universe belongs to Gene Roddenberry.

Chapter 8

The six Marquis with significant engineering experience were working quickly to put together the photon canon. The others were standing guard. Oreshk walked around, checking their progress. He was nervous: he'd found the bodies of four Jem'hadar, but no sign of Kira or the changeling. He told himself they might have beamed out before he transported to the cave, but he'd heard too much about Kira Nerys to give much credit to that theory.

His skepticism was soon confirmed when his communication device buzzed to life. "Lurok to Oreshk. We're under attack! It's Kira…" There was a blunt sound, and the communicator fell silent.

The nearby security personnel had overheard the message.

"Let's go," said Oreshk. "Don't kill her unless she leaves you no other choice. Remember that she's a hero to Cardassia, as well as a Starfleet officer." He set his phaser on high stun and led the handful of men and women he affectionately referred to as his security officers towards Lurok's position.

They found two unconscious guards a few meters deeper in the cave. Kira stood over them, holding a phaser pointed at Oreshk.

"I know you're very brave, but I also know you're not a fool. Give up, Kira."

"I was about to tell you the same thing, Oreshk. You know that Dominion forces will converge on this planet and nothing will save you."

"Maybe." He narrowed his eyes at her. "Where is the changeling?"

"You expect me to tell you?"

"No, I suppose not." He aimed his phaser, and realized a moment later that it wasn't firing.

Kira discarded her own useless phaser and attacked. She threw a punch at Oreshk, which he blocked. He tried to hit her, but she ducked, kneed him in the gut, and back fisted him in the head before his cronies could come to his rescue. She was slammed against the cave wall, pinned there by a guard on either side.

Oreshk stood up straight, rubbed his head, and walked up to her menacingly. He pressed his forearm against her neck. "Kira, I don't want to hurt you, but I will if I have to. Just tell me where the changeling is."

Her lips turned up in a viciously triumphant smile. "You're too late," she rasped.

None of the Marquis had noticed a golden thread of fluid pool behind Oreshk. Now it expanded, shooting out at the Marquis guards. Kira took advantage of the distraction to break away from the two men holding her arms. She knocked them out before they had time to assess the situation. Odo grabbed Oreshk and tossed him to the ground. Kira turned off the energy dampener, picked up a phaser, put it on the lowest setting, and shot Oreshk. He groaned from the pain, then lay still, conscious but paralyzed.

After making sure all of the Marquis were incapacitated, Odo went to Kira. "Are you injured?"

"No." She smiled at him. "And you thought this was going to be difficult."

"It's not over yet," he reminded her. But he smiled back. Impulsively, he reached out and caressed her cheek, appreciating once again how lucky he was. So many times, over so many years, every time he saw her beautiful face he suppressed a desire to touch her. He never allowed himself to imagine actually doing it, just like he'd never fantasized about her: he respected her too much for that. But the longing was always there. Sometimes it filled him with happiness just to be with her, to know her, to be content simply to call her his friend. But sometimes it tormented him. He never looked in mirrors because seeing his reflection reminded him of all that separated them. He was terrified she would find out, and ashamed for loving someone so far above him. Eventually, as his confidence and self-image improved, he began thinking maybe—just maybe—someday… That was about the time she fell in love with Shakaar, dashing his hopes. He tried so hard to ignore his feelings for her then that it came as a surprise when, after his people punished him by making him solid, Kira appeared in his dreams. In his favorite dreams, based on the novels O'Brien lent him, he was a detective in old Earth with Kira as his sidekick. Another dream involved a meeting of the senior staff which was completely normal except that Kira came in late and all of the chairs were taken, so Sisko told Kira to sit on Odo's lap. That was the closest he ever got to her in his dreams. But in his waken life he worked hard to squelch his feelings for her. Then she and Shakaar broke up. Immediately after hearing that news, Odo began going over in his mind how long he should wait for her to get over Shakaar, how horrible it would be if he waited too long—again—and she found someone else, and whether he could ask Kira to dinner without it sounding like a date. His future self preempted most of those concerns. Then he was afraid he lost her forever after what happened during the Dominion occupation of the station. But when he thought she was going back to Shakaar, he couldn't take it anymore.

So that was why now, when he actually had the right to touch her like he'd wanted to since the first time she smiled at him and left an afterimage of her glowing face burned into his soul, he treasured the sensation like a Ferengi treasured latinum.

After a long moment, he drew his hand away. "Where is this transporter dissipater?"

"It has to be close," Kira answered. She reactivated the energy dampener and led the way in the direction Oreshk and his entourage had come from.

Oreshk watched them disappear from sight. He still couldn't move, though feeling was starting to come back to his digits. He'd seen the way the changeling looked at Kira—eyes so full of sincere love and devotion—and was considering that he might have been wrong.

* * *

Dry, frigid air fell down from high overhead, where the dull white glow of day could be seen. Below, the components of what would obviously become a large, powerful weapon had been partially assembled in a wide room of the cave. Half a dozen Marquis lay unconscious on the cave floor. Near the entrance to this room, Odo stood watch as Kira tried to figure out the transporter dissipater's mechanisms. 

"I suppose you have a plan for what to do with them when this is all over?" Odo inquired.

"Aren't you supposed to be the leader now?" Kira half-joked.

"It's not exactly a role I was born to play."

Kira did something that caused the unsightly chunk of machinery to power down with an audible whine.

Almost immediately they were beamed to the Dominion ship.

"Founder," said Weyoun the moment they materialized. "I'm so pleased that you're safe."

Odo, Kira, and Kalaran gave him annoyed looks.

Kalaran inquired, "Is Taran'atar…?"

"Dead." Odo added more solemnly, "So are Niva'sebek, Fol'kotin, and Jolin'yobek."

Kalaran nodded sadly. She locked eyes with First Rinak'vaka, wordlessly expressing her condolences. Then she turned back to Odo. "The Alpha Quadrant ship has retreated to the asteroid belt. Shall we pursue?"

Odo looked uncertain. Kira stepped in. "Can you beam the people on the planet up here?"

"Of course," the Vorta answered. She looked to Odo.

"Do it," Odo instructed, not knowing what Kira had in mind, but trusting her judgment.

A moment later, the fourteen Marquis materialized on the bridge. Most of them were still unconscious; those who weren't found themselves surrounded by Jem'hadar.

Kira sought out Oreshk. She pulled him to his feet and held her phaser to his head. "Hail the Marquis ship."

Kalaran handed Kira a headset viewer. The Marquis bridge appeared on it a moment later. Teyan sat in the captain's chair, looking calm and controlled, but with an undertone of panic.

"Captain Kira. I see you're still alive," she said, sounding only vaguely disappointed, "and that you appear to be holding our leader hostage."

"Along with every other Marquis who beamed down to the planet," Kira added pleasantly.

Teyan's lips tightened, but she nodded in resignation. "What are your demands?"

"Power down your ship's weapons and drop your shields."

"That's all?"

"For now. End transmission." Kira looked at Odo. "That's a Federation ship. They violated the Federation treaty with the Dominion. If they turn control of the ship over to me, I can arrest them and take them back to the Alpha Quadrant."

Oreshk glanced up at Odo and the Jem'hadar soldiers. For the sake of his crew, he preferred that option to being captured by the Dominion. "If you guarantee our safety," he said weakly, "I'll order Teyan to turn command over to you."

"I don't think we'll have much resistance from her," Kira told him. "But I can only guarantee the safety of your ship and crew if they cooperate."

Oreshk sighed, but nodded. "I understand."

"Sounds good to me," Odo agreed. "We'll escort you to the Wormhole. But if you don't mind, I'd like to keep their leader on our ship where I can keep an eye on him."

Kira nodded. She addressed Kalaran. "Have they dropped shields?"

"Yes," she confirmed after checking the sensor readings.

"Then beam everyone but Oreshk to their ship, then hail them."

The Marquis vanished. A moment later, Teyan reappeared on Kira's screen. "What about Oreshk?" she demanded.

"We'll be escorting you back to the Alpha Quadrant," Kira explained. "Oreshk is going to stay here until we get there."

"For your protection," Teyan surmised.

"As a gesture of goodwill on your part," Kira said with a tight smile. She decided she spent too much time with politicians.

A look of calm composure replaced Teyan's suppressed worry. "In that case, I want you to take the trip on our ship. As a gesture of goodwill on your part."

"That was the plan," replied Kira.

Teyan inclined her head slightly, then ended the transmission.

Kira handed her hostage to one of the Jem'hadar…the one called Rinak'vaka, if she remembered correctly. "Make sure he arrives in one piece."

"Of course." There was no indication that he was offended by the implication. On the contrary, he sounded amused.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Odo asked her. "Can you trust her to keep her word?"

"Teyan's hard to figure out," Kira admitted. "But I am convinced she won't do anything to endanger Oreshk.

"Watch your back," he recommended.

"I always do." She gave him an intense kiss. Then she told Kalaran to beam her to the Marquis ship.

* * *

"Drop your weapons," Teyan grumbled to those of the _Damar'_s crew that immediately pointed their phasers at Kira. "Computer, turn command functions over to Kira Nerys, authorization Teyan Beta one-three." 

"Transfer complete," the computer chirped.

Teyan glanced at Kira, her expression ambiguous. Then she exited the bridge to the captain's office.

"Set a course for the Wormhole," Kira instructed the reluctant crew. "Coordinate with the Jem'hadar ship. Match their velocity."

After a few minutes of watching stars shoot past the screen, Kira followed Teyan into the next room. The other woman was gazing out the window. She didn't turn around.

"I suppose your mission failed," Kira said carefully.

"You can suppose that."

"You're not as good at this as you should be, you know. It's almost like you want to get caught."

"Are you talking about me as a Marquis," she finally turned around, her face a mask of the most intense expressionlessness Kira had ever seen, "or something else?"

"You play the hardened, bitter Marquis well enough," Kira said, "but when you made a show of eating, that's when I began to suspect there was more to you than that." She began pacing and continued. "It wasn't until I wondered about it later that I realized you were the one who beamed me over to the Jem'hadar ship. You must have programmed the transporter to lock on to the phaser signature right before you fired at me. Considering that, along with the fact that you convinced Oreshk to bring me with you and that you conveniently let me in on Oreshk's plan…led me to the conclusion that you _wanted_ me to sabotage your mission. But why would you do that? I had a few suspicions…" Kira turned to face Teyan, holding a phaser. She fired.

Teyan melted slightly, then resumed her humanoid form.

"And now I know for sure," Kira concluded.

"I knew you were intelligent," Teyan complimented her. "You don't realize it, but we have met before. I was stationed in the Alpha Quadrant and even spent some time on Deep Space Nine before the war started and I was recalled to the Great Link. After Odo cured us, I decided to leave again. To be honest, I didn't want to hear what Odo was trying to tell us. It…I guess it reminded me too much of ideas I forced myself not to think when I was part of the war effort. While I was visiting Cardassia, which is one of the planets I spent time on before the war, I learned about Oreshk's New Marquis movement. I joined it hoping I could keep them from doing any real damage to the Dominion. Which I suppose I have: once Oreshk is out of the picture, the movement will crumble. He's their unifying force, their inspiration."

"It wouldn't hurt to have you tell them the Dominion isn't the threat they think it is."

"Yes it would. They would assume I was replaced by a changeling." She smiled at the irony. "And they would be able to prove it. It will be better if we're taken to a Federation prison. All of us."

"You don't want to rejoin your people." It wasn't a question. "Does Oreshk know?"

"Know what?"

"That you're in love with him."

Teyan froze. "What makes you so sure I am?"

"I suspected it by the way you acted with him and the way you talk about him. What convinces me, now that I know what you are, is the look on your face when Oreshk said no changeling would ever love a solid."

She lowered her eyes. "No," she said quietly, "he doesn't know."

"You want him to find out the truth," Kira said reasonably. "You want him to love you for who you really are."

Teyan realized it was true, and that was why she'd never been able to tell Oreshk how she felt about him. "But that's not possible," she said softly. "If he knew, he would kill me."

Kira put a sympathetic hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry." She tried to think of something more useful to say, but there was nothing.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Paramount owns _Star Trek Deep Space Nine._ The Star Trek Universe belongs to Gene Roddenberry.

Chapter 9

"Seven Jem'hadar ships are approaching the Wormhole," Third Shik'itab announced.

Kalaran and Rinak'vaka converged on the tactical sensor readout. "Those aren't our ships," said Kalaran. "They may Laas loyalists."

"That explains why they're heading for the Wormhole," Odo said, walking up behind them. "Scan the center ship for kemacite."

Rinak'vaka typed in the command. "Highly refined kemacite explosive device carried in the center ships engine compartment."

Oreshk peered over the shoulder of one of his Jem'hadar guards. "Why are they trying to go through the Wormhole with a kemacite bomb?" he asked suspiciously.

Odo continued looking at the scan results. "They're not going to go _through _the Wormhole; they're going _in_ it. They intend to collapse it and cut the Alpha Quadrant off from the Gamma Quadrant for good."

"Why?"

"Because Laas doesn't trust the Federation any more than you trust the Dominion. But he's not going to succeed if I can help it. Set an intercept course."

* * *

Teyan and Kira stood on the bridge of the _Damar._

"They're changing course," Henam said, perplexed.

"Seven Dominion ships coming within sensor range," Riopo informed them. "It looks like they're going to intercept."

"Laas," Kira hissed under her breath. "Match their course and speed, raise shields, and charge phasers."

"Captain," Grein, the Cardassian communications officer (whose mother, a gul, died fighting the Federation, and whose father was executed at random by Dominion soldiers during the closing days of the war) said grudgingly, "we're being hailed by the Founder's ship."

"Onscreen," Kira ordered.

Odo's visage appeared. "We seem to have a problem," he said.

"We noticed. Laas's ships, I take it?"

"They're trying to detonate a kemacite explosive device in the Wormhole."

Kira sucked in a sharp breath. "The chronoton radiation…would destroy the Prophets!"

"I'm not going to let that happen, Kira," he promised. "We're going to beam Oreshk over to your ship, and then we're going to attack. I want you well out of range in case that kemacite detonates."

"You can't face seven ships alone," Kira argued.

"We've sent out a distress signal. There are a number of ships loyal to me in this sector. Besides, they know I'm on this ship, so they'll be reluctant to destroy it. You don't have that advantage. I know this is important to you, Nerys, but you're just as important to me." He cut the signal. A moment later, Oreshk materialized on the bridge.

Teyan went to him. "Are you alright?"

"Other than my mission being a colossal failure, my ship and crew being captured, and an enemy that takes no prisoners between us and our only way home, I'm fine." He looked intently at her. Something seemed different, something about the way she was looking at him. "What about you?"

"We're fine. Some of the away team had minor injuries, but they've been treated."

Kira didn't take her eyes off the viewer, which showed Odo's ship heading for a confrontation with the enemy. They opened fire. It soon became evident that Odo's gamble was paying off: the ships were being careful not to cause serious damage. But unless backup came soon, they would be incapacitated.

Then two of the ships escorting the kemacite bomb broke formation and headed in the _Damar'_s direction.

"They're coming after us!" declared a panicking and confused Riopo. He still had nightmare about the day Jem'hadar ships appeared in the sky over his home planet, the Bolian colony world of Ajatuas.

"Can Dominion sensors identify individual lifesigns from that distance?" Kira asked.

"Yes," Teyan confirmed.

Oreshk gave her a puzzled look. He didn't know how his second-in-command could possibly know that.

"They must know I'm here," Kira realized. "They're trying to force Odo to choose between the Wormhole and me." She turned around and spoke to the bridge crew like they were her own. "If the Wormhole is destroyed, none of us will get home again. We're going to fight. Raise shields!"

No one had a problem following her order.

"Is this ship equipped with photon torpedoes?" she asked Oreshk.

"Yes. But we only have four."

"Not many…Let's make them count. Fire phasers at the lead ship. Weaken their shields."

The young Deltan man at the weapons console complied. His name was Tithsha, formerly lieutenant commander of the Federation ship _Scipio_, and one of only a handful of survivors who made it to an escape pod when it was destroyed during the battle for Cardassia.

The Dominion ship's shields easily absorbed the phaser's energy, but Tithsha continued firing.

Kira turned to Riopo. "What's the status of Odo's ship?"

"Still engaging the five remaining vessels."

"Thank you, Odo," Kira whispered.

The _Damar_ shook as both attacking Jem'hadar ships opened fire.

Kira steadied herself by grabbing the back of the weapons officer's chair. "How are their shields holding up?"

"Sixty-six percent…and falling," Riopo told her.

"Fire two photon torpedoes at the lead ship on my mark," Kira instructed. "…Now!"

They fired the torpedoes, which exploded against the shields, but didn't destroy the target.

"Resume phasers," Kira commanded.

Phaser fire cut across the Jem'hadars' hull. Bright marks appeared on the metal, then a cloud of gases sputtered into the vacuum.

The other ship fired at them through the expanding cloud of condensing water vapor and other atmospheric gas.

"Our shields are down to fifty-eight percent and falling," said Dlinmus Rik, the elderly Cardassian man at the tactical console, a long-retired soldier whose children and grandchildren died in the bombing of Lakarian City.

"Keep firing at the lead ship. Target remaining photon torpedoes at the next ship."

The lead ship exploded as the phasers burned through to its warp engine.

"Fire!"

The last two photon torpedoes detonated against the ships shields.

"Minimal damage," Riopo said worriedly.

"Shields at forty-five percent."

"Try to pilot us below that ship," Kira told Henam. "Weapons, keep firing phasers in one second bursts every three seconds."

The ship continued shaking under the barrage of weapons fire.

"Shields at thirty percent and falling."

A distant explosion appeared on the viewer. Kira had no way to know if it was Odo's ship or one of the enemy vessels.

"Enemy ship is changing course to counter us," Henam said.

"Evasive maneuvers."

A particularly powerful blast shook the bridge.

The weapons officer's eyes widened in terror. "Phasers offline," he said in a small voice.

Kira frowned and quickly tried to come up with something.

"Hail them," Teyan suddenly commanded.

Everyone on the bridge stared at her.

"Jem'hadar don't normally accept surrender," Henam stated. "Believe me; I've fought along side them as well as against them."

"Just do it…Send them our internal sensor telemetry."

"Why?" the tactical officer inquired.

"Just do it," Kira repeated Teyan. She had an idea of what the Marquis second-in-command was planning.

"Data stream open," said the communications officer.

In the middle of the bridge, Teyan shapeshifted into the vague humanoid form changelings wore when they weren't trying to hide their true nature. Several of the bridge officers gasped. Someone screamed. Oreshk just stared at her in uncomprehending shock.

Almost instantly, the attack stopped.

"The…the Jem'hadar are hailing us," the communications officer said, breaking the silence.

"Onscreen," said Teyan. She chose to keep her voice the same. Her eyes were also the same dark brown, and she wore the same dark, informal clothes.

A Jem'hadar face appeared on the viewer. "I am First Elok'un, commander of the _Nohoch'kak_. Please forgive our error in firing on you. How may I serve you, Founder?"

"Assist us in defending the Wormhole," she answered.

"I've been ordered to help destroy it." First Elok'un seemed to be having a crisis.

"By _one_ rogue Founder, but _two_ Founders are ordering you to defend it. Or you can drop your shields and power down your weapons and engines. That way you will not be disobeying any order."

Elok'un considered his options. "Your shields are weakened and you are weaponless. I will protect you if you insist on defending the Wormhole, Founder."

"Thank you for your service, First. End transmission." She shifted to her previous form. "Let's go help Odo."

The crew looked uncertain.

"Now," Kira snapped. They obeyed her.

Oreshk glanced between her and Teyan. "Were you in on this together?" he asked.

"No," Teyan said. "We just happened to find ourselves on the same side. Ilik, I know this is hard for you to understand, but…"

He cut her off. "Later. We'll deal with this later." He looked away from her forcefully, for the moment denying her existence and focusing on the threat to his ship. He had never been a warrior, and he had sense enough to realize he wasn't the person to lead his crew into battle. "We're awaiting your orders, Captain," he told Kira.

She nodded her gratitude, then turned her attention to the viewer. "How long until we can get weapons online?"

"If they're repairable at all…about three hours, at best," Tithsha reported.

There were four ships still attacking Odo. One of them was carrying the kemacite. "What's their status?"

"Shields are down to fifty-one percent. Phaser cells are nearly depleted."

"Head between those ships, full impulse. And hail Odo."

The viewer switched to the _Shkalek_'s bridge.

"What are you doing?" Odo asked gruffly.

"Disengage and retreat a hundred kilometers," she said in the same commanding voice she'd been using with the crew.

"Why?"

"Just trust me. You never officially resigned from the militia, which means I'm still your superior officer, so make that an order. End transmission."

"They're retreating," Riopo reported. "What exactly _are _we doing?"

Kira walked next to Henam. "Navigate straight through the middle of those ships. Do _not_ slow down, or we're dead."

"Whatever you say. No pressure," she breathed as she set in the course.

Moving at full impulse, the _Nohoch'kak_ looked like it was chasing them. When the other four ships began to fire on the _Damar_, it fired on them. One was destroyed right as they passed it. The one carrying the bomb was too close to it; when the warp core lost containment, the ship's shields weren't sufficient to protect the kemacite. It exploded as they sped away, destroying the two other ships along with it. The _Nohoch'kak_ flew between them and the explosion, absorbing the energy before it could damage them. But its own shields couldn't hold, and it burst into a fireball that was quickly engulfed by the expanding blaze of the kemocite bomb.

Kira closed her eyes, mournfully adding the Jem'hadar on that ship to the long list of people whose deaths were on her conscience and haunted her on sleepless nights. But they made it outside the blast radius, which meant at least she had saved the lives of the Marquis. She couldn't let herself think beyond the victory. She would have broken down long ago if she let herself do that.

The bridge crew cheered. She allowed herself to feel happy for them.

"We're being hailed," the communications officer Grein informed her.

"Onscreen."

Odo appeared once more. "Congratulations, Captain. Once again you've miraculously survived a seemingly suicidal move."

"You're welcome, Constable. Shall we resume course to the Wormhole?"

"After you."

The two ships went to warp.

With the most pressing crisis over, Oreshk shifted his thoughts to his former trusted lieutenant. How could he let her survive? She was a changeling, an agent of the Dominion…

…And had just saved all of their lives.

"Ilik…" she began.

Without even looking at her, he marched off to his office.

Kira inclined her head toward the door, silently urging Teyan to follow. She did.

* * *

Oreshk looked across his desk at the changeling he used to consider his close friend and loyal second. Neither of them had spoken for several minutes. 

"I don't even know what to call you anymore," he finally blurted out. "Your kind don't use names."

"'Teyan' is fine. I like that name." She had stopped breathing, which Oreshk found disconcerting. "Ilik, I know this is a shock…"

"That might be the understatement of the decade."

"…I want you to understand. At first I was just trying to protect my people, like you did when Cardassia revolted against the Dominion…but then I stuck with it because I wanted to protect _you._ You knew from the beginning that you didn't stand a real chance against the Dominion; I couldn't let you waste your life fighting a useless and doomed battle. You have too much to offer. You…" She sighed. "You're my friend. I know you find that hard to believe, but it's true. I know you're a reasonable man, Ilik. Think about it."

Oreshk didn't know what to think. Before this mission—before seeing Jem'hadar fight Jem'hadar, Kira Nerys risk her life for a changeling, and the changeling Odo showing not only that he loved a solid, but also respected her as an equal—he would have been sure Teyan was plotting against him all along. But now he had his doubts. "What are you going to do now?" he asked her.

"I'll allow myself to be tried with the Marquis. Probably go to a Federation prison."

"If they find out you're a Founder, you won't be under their jurisdiction."

"Yes I will…_if_ they believe I was working with the Marquis against my people."

"But you weren't," he said. "And you're not. There's no reason for you to stand trial along with the Marquis. You're not one of us. I'll beam you to Odo's ship before we go through the Wormhole." He stood up, dismissing her.

She stood too, but instead of leaving she stared at him. The intensity of her gaze was such that he couldn't look away. "I'll let the courts decide if I'm a Marquis or not. In the meantime, if you want to get rid of me, you're just going to have to kill me."

For a moment he considered reaching for the phaser hidden in a compartment beneath his desk, but then he fell back into his chair. Though a man of strong conviction, he was neither stubborn nor unreasonable, and now he was ready to admit defeat. "I can't do that. You're still too much the Teyan who was my friend and most valuable ally."

"Always," she stated firmly. Then she turned and exited to the bridge, leaving Oreshk with his thoughts.

* * *

When they reached the Wormhole, Kira hailed Odo. "I don't think we'll have any further problems once we reach the Alpha Quadrant," she said. "And, Odo, thank you for protecting the Prophets." 

"You did more for them than I did."

"Still, I appreciate that you put their safety before mine."

He had trouble answering that. "I knew it was what you wanted," he managed to say. "And I'll keep protecting them. I don't think Laas is going to give up, but I'll do everything I can to stop him."

"Thank you." She cut off the transmission. Kira wasn't the kind of person who looked back, let her thoughts linger much on the past, or nursed regrets. She kept her eyes glued to the viewer and forced herself not to think of Odo as the ethereal light of the Celestial Temple blossomed before them.


End file.
